Economy file



July 23, 1940- E. l.. KURTH ECONOMY FILE Filed mmh z, Y1959 abbo/wwwa n IT 4 Patented July 23, 1940 UNITED STATES areas/2a rarest orf-rien 4 Claims.

'I'his invention relates to rile boxes and more particularly to a file box constructedof card-y board or similar material.

The object of the invention is to provide a le if box of simple and inexpensive construction for filing letters, bills, papers and other documents, said file box being made of cardboard so as to economize in cost of structural material. and consequently reduce the costof manufacture.

. A further object of the invention is to provide ale box having its opposite sides open and its top and front and rear walls closed to form receptacle adapted to receive the letters or other documents to be iiled, the bottom ot the box or receptacle being provided with letter impaling pins and the rear wall thereof hinged to said bottom so as to permit convenient access to the contents of the le boxwhen: desired.

A further object of the invention is to provide aY file box which is light in weight, durable in construction and elicient in operation.

Further objects and advantages will appear in the following specification.

In the accompanying drawing forming a part of this vspeciiicaticn and in which similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the gures of the drawing:

Figure l is a perspective view of a cardboard filing box constructed in accordance with the present invention, the back wall of the box being shown in dotted lines in open position,

Figure 2 is a transverse sectional viewrtalren on the line 2.-2 of Figure l,

` Figure 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional View taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2, and

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional View taken on the line of Figure 2.

The improved ling box forming the subjectmatter of the present invention is preferably formed of corrugated cardboard to reduce the weight thereof and the cost of manufacture, said. box comprising a substantially rectangular receptacle 5 having its opposite sides open and its top 6, bottom l and rear Wall 8 iirmly united to form a rigid structure dening an interior compartment for the reception of the letters. bills and other documents to be filed. The top 6 and rear wall 8 of the receptacle are preferably formed of two plies of cardboard fastened together by cement or other suitable adhesive material, while the bottom 'l is constructed .from three plies of cardboard, as best shown in Figures 2 and 3 of the drawing. The uppermost cardboard ply 9 of the bottom of the receptacle is cut-away adjacent the rear wall 8 thereof to form a seating recess (Cl. 12S-lle) lil for the reception of a cross bar l! preferably formedV of Wood. This cross bar ll is secured' within its seat by screws or similar fastening. devices I2 extending throughreinforcing plates i3 interposed between the intermediate and lowermost ply oi the bottom, as best shown iny Figure 3 of the drawing. The bar H is thus iirmly vare spaced from the innersurface of the top wall of the box while the connecting yoke i8 of the impaling member is seated within the groove t!! and rests against the intermediate ply of cardboard constituting the bottom of the rilel box. The impaling pins-iii. are also spaced from the rear wallr 8 of the receptacle so as to permit letters, bills and other papers or documents to be readily impa-led on said pins` for future reference; The baclr wall lof the` file box ispreferably formed from a single ply or sheet of corrugated cardboard, and said back Wallis hinged to the bottom wall by a strip of fabric, canvas or other suitable material 2i! so as to permit said back wall to be` conveniently swung downwardly when it is desired to obtain access to the contents of the box. Securing tapes 2! are fastened to the top of the receptacle and back wall I9 near their free ends by suitable staples 22 so that, when the le box is not in use, the rear wall thereof may be securely held in closed position. by tying the tapes into a bow knot, as best shown in Figure 1 of the drawing. The upper cardboard ply il of the bot-.- tom l' preferably terminates in spaced relation to the inner face of the back wall I9 to form a shallow recess 23 defining a transverse shoulder 24, and this recess and shoulder permit the operator to readily grasp the adjacent ends of the papers and thus facilitate indexing and sorting said papers before they are iinpaled on the pins I6. Inasmuch as the file boxes are flat and light in weight, they may be stacked one upon the other on a shelf orv in a suitable cabinet. In order to facilitate the removal of a selected file box, the front Wall 8 thereof is provided with a handle 25 preferably formed of a single strip oi tape, the opposite ends of which pass `through incisionsZ in the outer ply of cardboard and are cemented or otherwise secured between the inner and outer plies of cardboard constituting the front wall 8 of the box, as best shown in Fig re 4 of the drawing.

By making the file box of corrugated cardboard not only is the weight of the box reduced to a minimum but said file box is sufficiently rigid and strong to effectually withstand rough usage to which it may be subjected in the handling thereof, thereby materially economizing in both weight and cost of manufacture.

It will, of course, be understood that the le boxes may be made in different sizes and shapes and nished in any color or stain and, if' desired, the walls of the boxes may be covered with shellac or wax to resist warping and render the le boxes thoroughly water-proof.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. A file box comprising an open-sided receptacle having united top, bottom and front walls formed of superposed plies of cardboard, the uppermost ply of cardboard constituting the bottom Wall of the receptacle being cut-away to form a seating recess, a bar seated in said recess, an impaling member anchored on the bar, a back wall pivoted to the bottom of the receptacle, and interengaging fastening devices carried by the top of the receptacle and said back wall.

2. A file box comprising an open-sided receptacle having united top, bottom and front Walls, the upper surface of the bottom wall being cutaway at one end thereof to form a transverse recess defining a vertical shoulder and the upper surface of the bottom wall at the other end thereof being provided with a seating recess, a transverse bar fitted in said seating recess and having its lower surface formed with a groove opening through the upper surface of the bar, a U-shaped impaling member having its closed end fitted in the groove in the bar and its opposite ends extending through the openings in the bar and terminating in impaling points, a back wall hinged to the bottom Wall adjacent the transverse recess, and interengaging fastening devices carried by the top of the receptacle and said back Wall.

3. A le box comprising an open-sided receptacle having rigidly united top, bottom and front walls formed of superposed plies of cardboard, the upper ply of cardboard constituting the bottom wall being cut-away to form a seating recess, a transverse bar tted in said recess and having a groove on its under surface opening through the top of the bar, anchoring plates interposed between the bottom and intermediate cardboard plies of the bottom Wall, fastening devices extending through said anchoring plates and engaging the bar, a substantially U-shaped impaling member having its closed portion seated in the groove in the bar and its opposite ends extended through the openings in said bar and terminating in piercing points, a back Wall pivotally connected with the bottom Wall, and interengaging fastening devices carried by the top of the receptacle and said back Wall for normally holding the back wall in closed position.

4. A le box comprising an open-sided receptacle having united top, bottom and front Walls formed of superposed plies of corrugated cardboard, a finger-engaging loop mounted on the outer surface of the front wall and having its opposite ends interposed between the cardboard plies of said front wall and united thereto, the upper cardboard ply of the bottom wall of the receptacle being cut-away adjacent the front Wall of the receptacle to form a seating recess, a transverse bar fitted in said seating recess, anchoring plates interposed between certain of the cardboard plies of the bottom wall, fastening devices carried by said anchoring plates and engaging said bar, an impaling device projecting vertically from the bar in spaced relation to the front Wall of the receptacle. a back wall pivotally connected with the rear end of the bottom wall, and interengaging fastening devices carried by the top of the receptacle and the back Wall for holding said back Wall in closed position.

EDWIN L. KURTH. 

